Some things need to be remembered

We're not just our failures. As much as they hurt, we learn from them. Then we go out there and do our best to make up for them. -Peter Parker

If you keep your vision clear you will see the future. What happens in our future is our own responsibility. -Rem Saverem

Caleb Norris-History and Nerd Extraordinaire

Just Who Do You Think I Am?​ My eighteen years on this Earth have been a mixed bag. Going from a small child to being legally considered an adult in what seems like a blink of the eye is a bit of a shock. My lifetime is less than nothing in the grand scheme of the universe and the course of all that is. But, that is not the point. What I've realized in this eighteen years is that that tiny bit that is me, matters. In fact, it matters more than anything else. Throughout my time in school a lot changed in my life which ultimately shaped me into the man I am now.Maybe that all is a bit dramatic but that's just how I like to write. However, it is entirely true. While I can't say that all of my time spent in LHS was enjoyable, it all impacted me and brought me to who I am at this moment, this second. My successes, my attempts, and especially my failures formed me into the Caleb Norris of the present. The four years went by faster than I expected but left me with memories I won't forget.

This is The Tale of a Man...

The very first day of high school was exactly what I expected; predictable. Masses of people I could care less about, classes that were hardly a challenge to me (except math), and the same petty drama and scenarios I faced in middle school. Seeing as the situation I was facing hadn't really changed, I wouldn't change either. I kept to my typical reclusive self, only interacting with my friends and keeping minimal contact with any others. The rest of the year went much the same way. I spent time analyzing the student body, attempting to blend in as much as possible and bring as little attention to myself as I could. The only times I attempted to be outgoing were in Mr. Morrill's U.S. History class. My shy and quiet self was constantly being shoved aside as no other student had the capacity to raise their hand. In that classroom was the first time I truly thought my subordinate nature may not be as concrete as I suspected, but I ultimately chocked it up to youthful insecurity. The rest of my year followed without revelation.

At the end of the year, a group of people left that I hardly knew.

Sophomore year was possibly my most challenging year, yet I learned much from it. My challenges began at band camp. Upon the day of the infamous skit night, my cabin, per usual, had no idea what we would do. Eventually the generic idea of parodying our fellow band members became our play. As the skit was ramshackled together the idea came about to have Mr. Cousineau's character behave as if he was a thug. Our entire group thought this was a great idea and made certain to incorporate it. Then, a new suggestion was made: "Chuck should be Couz." Now, I don't remember exactly who said this, but I have a strong feeling it was Quinn Mahoney. I was opposed to this idea immediately but before I could voice my objections nearly everyone had agreed with the casting. That moment made me rethink my place with these people. I had made myself feel isolated around these people, after all they hardly knew me. Yet here they were, certain that I could pull this off. I made my choice that even if I made a fool of myself I would go out there and do it for them. Not to brag or anything, but I killed that performance. I improvised the whole shtick and created M.C. Couzee, a reacurring skit character that is still used to this day; but that isn't important. What's most important to me is how that was the day I changed. That day I realized my lame loner cliche wouldn't cut it and wasn't and accurate representation of myself. Sure, I may be shy but I love being around people. There are many people out there that trust me for some reason and that day made me realize that I should trust them too.

My alter ego, M.C. Couzee takes the field.

My nemesis, Colin Mahoney, with our dinner on the way back from our freshman band trip to Disney World.

Academically, sophomore year put me through the ringer, and when speaking of challenges I have to include Honors American Literature. My first class with Mrs. Hebert was a bit of a doozy for myself and many other students. I continuously botched essays in this class and felt I was at my wit's end within the first month. But, a lot of good came of all that struggling. I can safely say that my love of writing came of the repeated drafts I crafted in order to pass that class. Writing is my favorite avocation and the foundations I received in that class helped me to become better at what I love. Eventually, the essays we were assigned and the edits we received no longer felt like chores but became enjoyable to me. This was a large tipping point in my life as I found something I love, and I found it by persevering through adversity. Chemistry challenged me as well and taught me one of the greatest lessons I could ever learn: you can't always win. I struggled terribly in that class, third hour was a daily battle and one that I was never sure I could survive. At the end of the year I found myself with a personal defeat in the form of a B. While not a bad grade I was devastated by my "failure." When the dust settled I realized that I would recover. Had I studied more or done something differently that grade may have been an A but there was no use moping about it. I made choices and they had consequences and now I would live with them and do better the next time. Things will not always go as you want them to, what is important is continuing on when they don't.

At the end of the year, a group of people left that I became close to.

I had begun to coast by junior year. By this time I had finally become comfortable with who I am, for the most part. I allowed my nerdy nature to come through and was no longer acting the part of a recluse to the public. Perhaps this is one reason I settled on my future. My junior year was the first time I had not had a history class in my curriculum, as like most juniors I instead took government and economics. This period made me realize how dearly I missed having a history class. I reminisced to my freshman and sophomore years, feeling nostalgic for lectures on the French Revolution and what goods were traded over the Columbian Exchange. There, sitting in T. Willy's class was when I realized I wanted to go into history as a profession. For years I had questioned what I wanted to do with my life, pondering which profession would best suit and. No choice had ever felt right to me; they all seemed like sub-par choices or necessary evils that would become stuffy inevitability. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I realized that history was what my heart yearned for. I wanted to be involved in what I loved on a daily basis. While I have not yet decided exactly what profession I want, I know it will be in the field of history and that is enough to make me excited for the future. The days went by as I dreamed about my future and galavanted about with my friends. Shenanigans and fun were had until the summer grew too hot to enjoy.

At the end of the year, a group of people left who were my dear friends and I miss to this day.

This all brings me here, to my senior year. While none too eventful, this calm time has given me a period of time to reflect. My time at LHS has taught and prepared me to take on the world. With a healthy dose of both adversity and joy I was able to face my true self and become the me I've always wanted to be. I leave behind a wealth of good times and experiences with people I love.

At the end of this year, I will have left.

A picture of my freshman, Chase, and I at my last performance.
I hope he reads this someday.

The crew reunited. Left to right: Me, Dan, Logan, Nick, and Zac on the ground.

﻿A Place For WeirdosAbove is my reflection for high school as a whole, however the most important part of my time in high school was beyond a shadow of a doubt band. As you can most likely tell from the abundance of band related pictures on my page, band was very special to me. Sixth hour was my haven to escape the world for awhile and focus on beautiful, and occasionally frustrating, music. Now, I may not be a musical wizard like my Papa, Drew, but I always gave each piece my best and feel accomplished in my time served in the trumpet section. A cumulative month of my life was spent at band camp, several days were used practicing and performing for both marching and concert season, and an incalculable number of notes came from the bell of my trumpet Lucille, and not a bit of it feels wasted. Most of my friendships were forged or deepened due to band, especially with the upperclassmen I became close to. My circle of friends was constantly growing as I befriended those in grades above and below me, turning me into a much more social creature. Well, more social for an hour a day, but I had to start somewhere. Band became a sort of home away from home, filled with people that cared about me and that I cared about. I knew these people were behind me and the thought of having a supportive army behind me helped me to emerge from my shell and become more outgoing. I'll never forget how helpful and nice the seniors were to me at my first band camp and realizing that band is more than just a group; it's a family.

As family's go, band is dysfunctional, but not in a bad way. Due to the varied members the group is not always cohesive but there is always a common goal set out and striven for. Being clustered together with melting pot of varying talents and personalities was very intimidating in my early band days. Though I learned quickly that how diverse band is makes it so special. Members of the band commonly refer to it as a cult and that is honestly the best way to describe it. We have odd traditions, inside jokes, and outsiders really don't know what to make of us, but that's okay since we get it and we enjoy our bizarre rituals. There is no other group on Earth where jocks, geeks, memesters, and socialites can all come together and be a cohesive bunch. The varied lot truly helped me as I was put into a sink-or-swim situation; forced to deal with very different people on a daily basis. It was adapt or die and I chose to live. I now feel so much better equipped to handle people in the future as I've been dealing with eccentrics for over four years now. The lessons I've learned in band, musical and personal, have been etched into me and will surely stick with me. To summarize, band was the most important part of my time in high school and I would probably be a hermit without it.

My Pride

My pride comes from my work, especially my writing. As I've detailed earlier writing is my love and passion. The cumulative time I've sat in my room drafting stories and plotting fictitious events likely ranges into months. No idea has particularly struck me as my magnum opus but the tales I've wove and characters created will forever stay with me and influence works of my future. I'm especially prideful of certain essays I wrote for school. I've always done my best to throw my personal flare into my essays and some of my best have special meanings. One of my personal favorites is a persuasive essay on who the hero of The Crucible was. My argument was that the daft old man Giles Corey was the hero. But, what some may not know was how the entire argument was based around superhero Batman. I used evidence linked to the Caped Crusader and ultimately made out Corey to be the Batman of Salem. Many other works I did were fusions of my two favorite things: writing and history. The poetry portion of A.P. Lit was especially hard for me as I despise poetry. Possibly the only way I made it through this unit was by incorporating historical events into many of the poems I had to write. My absolute favorite was "Brothers at Arms" which took days to perfect. It's one of my favorite things that I've written and it's the only poem I wrote that I didn't despise making.​

For Those Seeking the Truth

If I was to give any advice to the future generations it would be to live in the moment. I spent a lot of time in high school planning ahead which got me very little. This isn't to say that planning is bad or not worthwhile as blindly rushing into things is risky. However, if you are like me you might over plan and end up thinking too much. A healthy bit of thought is good but if you put too much thought into something it may very well ruin a good time. When someone asks if you want to do something, go for it. Of course, it may not be good to do this all the time, such as if exams are coming. But focusing on what may come of things in the future, which is indefinite, will get you very little in the way of fun and stories to tell later. Throwing caution to the wind isn't always the best thing to do but going out and doing what you want now is better than seeking and plotting for a day that may never come. One more bit of advice, which is probably the most cliché bit of advice any person could give; be yourself. Before you grab the torches and pitchforks hear me out. I understand this is advice you could get from any random student but it really does make your life's experiences much more enjoyable. I am a nerd. It's who I am. I'm into nerdy and geeky stuff, from superheroes to video games and everything in between. I used to tone all that down since I didn't want to paint a target on my back or to draw unwanted attention to myself. All that changed though after I realized there's no reason I should hide who I am. What do I care if someone doesn't like what I like? Why should I keep what I feel bottled up to appease someone that enjoys judging others. Anyone that takes it on themselves to judge others that don't have the same interests are extremely insecure and you should simply pity their inexperience at behaving like a person. Be okay with who you are. Do you like what you like? Do you enjoy your pastimes and hobbies? Then be proud of what you like and keep to your path. If someone doesn't approve then ignore them, this is your life not theirs.

All's Well That Ends Well...

And so, I find myself at the end, or the intermission to be more correct. Don't let the title mislead you as I have much more to do before my story is over. Having learned the basics of societal functionality I am off to make something of myself. The end of high school leads to the beginning of college and the rest of my life. The time I've spent in LHS has done wonders for me. It helped me decide on what I wanted to do with my life, it helped me become comfortable with who I am, and it gave me the best set of friends a person could ask for. I'll take everything I've received and put it to good use. High school was fun, more fun than I expected it to be, but now it's time to enter my future and leave my past behind. Humans have no means of knowing what the future has in store for them, but I fully intend to take hold of mine and get all I can out of it.

Just as so many of my friends before me, I have to get going. After all, my story isn't going to write itself.

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